


Finders Keepers

by blacktofade



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Friends to Lovers, Hook-Up, Idiots in Love, M/M, Miscommunication
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-29
Updated: 2019-06-29
Packaged: 2020-05-30 17:49:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,897
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19408291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blacktofade/pseuds/blacktofade
Summary: Ryan wakes with a hangover and an empty bed, and only one of them he expects.





	Finders Keepers

Ryan wakes with a hangover and an empty bed, and only one of them he expects.

His eyes are hard to keep open as he stretches, one hand reaching out for the body he thinks should be next to his, but his palm hits cool sheets that have long since been left behind. He lifts his head with a sudden jolt of unease. There’s a dent in the pillow next to his, which means it wasn’t a dream, but when he sits up enough to peer over the side of the bed, the abandoned clothes on the floor are only his own.

“Shane?” he calls out, because maybe he’s just in the bathroom, or maybe he’s getting coffee downstairs. He knows how to work Ryan’s Keurig machine — it's not completely out of the realm of possibility. Or, maybe he’s being ridiculously charming and getting them breakfast pastries from the bakery half a block over.

He checks his nightstand for any kind of note Shane might have left, and when he finds nothing, he unlocks his phone. He has three new texts from Jake, a photo from his mom who’s apparently out for breakfast already, and a missed call from a spam number. There’s nothing from Shane and his stomach churns — not just from his hangover.

He sprawls back out on his bed, careful not to jostle his painful head too much, and shuts his eyes.

*

“This is a bad idea,” Shane tells him, lips dragging against Ryan’s jaw, his hands low on Ryan’s waist. His shirt is half unbuttoned and he has a bruise the size of Ryan’s mouth on his collarbone.

“We definitely shouldn’t,” Ryan agrees, but he’s still working at the buttons of Shane’s fly, popping them open one-by-one until he can get a hand inside. Shane’s hot and hard against his palm and he ruts against Ryan like it’s all he wants.

“Don’t stop,” he moans and Ryan doesn’t.

*

_I have a hangover_ he texts Shane after he’s showered. He’d puked halfway through, barely making it to the toilet in time, getting water everywhere, with his stomach roiling with a mix of old alcohol and uneasy feelings.

Now, he’s sitting on his unmade bed in just a towel, water dripping down the back of his neck from his wet hair. His hands tremble when he hits send, and he hates that when he looks past his phone to the mussed sheets, he can picture what Shane would look like, sprawled out sleepily in the morning light. He’d grin and throw an arm over his eyes to block out the light and maybe let Ryan kiss him a little more awake.

_Did you get home safe?_ he adds a few moments later and then stares down at the screen, waiting for Shane’s typing bubble to pop up. It doesn’t.

Shane’s prompt at answering texts. It’s become a joke at work about how glued to his phone he is. The only time he never answers is if he’s at the movies or on a date, and Ryan thinks it’s a little too early on a Sunday after a night of drinking for either.

He doesn’t know what he’s meant to do, how he’s meant to focus with his stomach in knots and his mind too fuzzy to think. This wasn’t how things were meant to go. He didn’t have a plan last night, but everything still feels wrong.

He waits.

*

Ryan thinks he could come just from the two fingers Shane has inside him, pressing deep and stretching him perfectly.

“ _Shane_ ,” he moans, but then Shane’s there, covering his mouth with his own until the noise gets muffled between them. Ryan wants so much and hates that he’s not coordinated enough to take what he needs. He wants to push Shane onto his back and sink onto his cock; wants to get on his hands and knees and let Shane fuck into him like they’re dying for it.

“That’s it, Ry,” Shane mumbles, mouth at the corner of Ryan’s own.

Ryan curls an arm around him and pulls him closer.

*

“Hey,” Ryan says when Shane picks up after four or five rings. He half expected it to go to voicemail, but he tries to sound casual, like he normally checks up on Shane at nine in the morning on a Sunday. “Whatcha doing?”

There’s a soft breath on the other end of the line and then the sound of Shane shifting around.

“Was asleep before you woke me,” Shane mumbles, sounding tired, and Ryan realizes that the noise he’s hearing is Shane bundled up in blankets — either on his bed or his stupidly large and comfortable couch. “What d’you want?”

He yawns into the receiver and Ryan swallows because he doesn’t know what he wants, let alone how to put it into words.

“Just wanted to see how you’re doing,” Ryan says instead because that’s at least true.

Shane grunts and it sounds like he rolls over because there’s a loud rushing noise like his phone rubbing against a pillow.

“I’m fine,” Shane tells him. “Never better.”

*

Shane puts Ryan on his back and fucks him just like that; easy as. Ryan has one hand pressed against the wall behind his bed, because every thrust of Shane’s hips threatens to send him headfirst into it if they’re not careful, and Ryan’s half laughing, half moaning, because when he thinks about how sex should be with Shane, it’s just like this.

Shane’s cheeks are flushed with color, eyes bright as he watches Ryan come apart. A grin breaks out across his face, like he can’t believe what they’re doing, and then he’s leaning down for Ryan’s mouth again.

This is what he wants, Ryan thinks. It’s everything he never knew he needed.

*

“When did you leave?” Ryan can’t help but ask and Shane hesitates slightly, just enough for Ryan to notice.

“Just after you fell asleep,” Shane tells him and Ryan doesn’t expect that answer. “I got an Uber home.”

“You could’ve stayed,” he says softly and there’s the sound of more shuffling, like Shane’s finally realizing he can’t have this conversation while he’s slowly falling back asleep.

After a moment, he says, “We both said it was a bad idea.”

Ryan shuts his eyes and rubs a hand across his forehead, suddenly feeling like everything is too constricting, like he can’t get enough oxygen.

“You think it was a mistake?” he asks and Shane’s silence says enough.

“I’ve gotta go,” Ryan says suddenly and he can hear Shane try to respond, but he ends the call before he can make out the words, needing to be anywhere but his room.

He needs to get out.

*

Ryan comes like it’s wrenched from his body, Shane's hand on his cock, his gaze heavy as he watches.

"Yeah, yeah, c'mon," he says, urging Ryan on as he makes a mess of Shane's hand and his own stomach until he feels like he's been wrung dry.

"Oh my god," Ryan wheezes and lets out a laugh because of course Shane would be the one to make him see stars during sex. Of course he seems to know Ryan's body better than Ryan does himself. "You're good at that."

Shane smirks down at him and Ryan lifts one leadened hand to push at his face in retaliation.

"Do you know what I am?" Shane asks, muffled from behind Ryan's palm.

"Don't," Ryan insists and Shane laughs, never once breaking his careful thrusts, which Ryan finds infuriating.

"I'm just a love machine," he sings, loud and off-key, his eyes crinkling in the corners.

" _Shh_ ," Ryan hisses, even as he laughs. "My housemates are asleep."

He gets his hand behind Shane's head and draws him down because if he can't get Shane to shut up, he'll just have to force him. Shane kisses back like he doesn't mind at all and his hips finally start losing rhythm.

He presses into Ryan as deep as he can get and then shudders, grinding softly, like he can't help himself. Ryan rubs at the back of Shane's neck as Shane pants into his mouth.

After a long moment, he leans back just enough to meet Ryan's gaze. Ryan gets the sudden realization that he really does like Shane's face and the intricacies of his expressions. He wants to see more of them, up close and personal.

He thinks this could be the start of something great.

*

There’s a park two blocks over from his apartment that he frequents — partly because it’s always full of people and Ryan likes watching them, but mostly because there’s a Pokémon Go gym in the middle that Ryan battles at all the time. Today though, he finds an empty bench at the edge of the grass and pulls his cap down low. The sun’s way too bright, but his shades help a little, and at least he can breathe easier now he’s not surrounded by reminders of Shane in his room.

His situation isn’t the end of the world. He’s sure there are lots of people who probably hook up with their friends and survive to see another day. He’s not special for being a hopeful idiot.

He stretches his legs out and sighs as he carefully lets himself relax.

*

“Fuck,” Ryan groans as he rolls out of bed. He’s sore and messy and in dire need of a shower, but Shane keeps grabbing at him like he doesn’t want him to leave.

He tips his head back and lets Shane kiss him just a moment longer. It’s deep and surprisingly sweet.

“I’ll be right back,” he promises and Shane grunts and flops into the sheets, grabbing the nearest pillow and tucking it under his head. He looks like he belongs there and Ryan’s stomach flips in happiness.

By the time he emerges from the bathroom, clean and still a little damp, Shane’s slumped to one side and Ryan can’t tell if he’s asleep or not. The bedside lamp is off, but there’s enough light filtering through his blinds that he doesn’t trip over anything as he moves towards the bed.

When the mattress dips, Shane grunts and rolls over, and Ryan gets the impression he actually was asleep.

“You’re good,” Ryan says, meaning Shane doesn’t have to move. There’s still more than enough space for him to sprawl out in and they’ve had plenty of experience sharing beds anyway.

“I am,” Shane jokes and Ryan gives him a few extra nudges as he settles in beside him, just because.

“Go to sleep,” Ryan tells him and Shane doesn’t respond, which means he might actually be taking Ryan’s advice for once.

Carefully, Ryan winds an arm around his waist and settles his mouth close enough to Shane’s shoulder that it’s probably considered a kiss. Shane doesn’t move away though, so Ryan shuts his eyes and lets the alcohol and exhaustion drag him under.

*

A shadow falls across Ryan. He has his eyes closed and face tilted into the warmth of the sun, but something blocks it and doesn’t move, and it’s harshing the relaxed vibe he’s slowly been creating.

He opens one eye and then the other and lets out a sigh. “How did you find me?”

Shane tucks his hands into his pockets and rocks back on his heels. “You’re still sharing your location with me.”

Ryan grunts. He’d enabled it before filming their latest _Unsolved Supernatural_ episode because they’d been in a forest in the middle of nowhere and Ryan gets paranoid about getting lost and no one being able to find him. Apparently, he forgot to turn it off after.

Shane rocks backwards again before tilting his head towards the bench. “Can I sit?”

“I don’t know — can you?” Ryan answers automatically, but Shane doesn’t laugh as he folds himself down beside him. It’s too warm for him to be wearing a jacket, but he is, which is classic Shane. He doesn’t even look the slightest bit overheated. Ryan bites at the skin around his thumb and waits, their shoulders brushing as Shane shifts.

Eventually, Shane asks, “Do you think it was a mistake?”

Ryan leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees and propping his head up on the tips of his steepled fingers. “You already said it was.”

“That’s not what I asked,” Shane says, voice surprisingly firm. “What do _you_ think about it?”

Ryan looks out towards the road beyond the park. A bus roars past and someone in the distance honks. “I don’t know,” he says gently and Shane makes a noise like he doesn’t believe him.

“Yes you do, or you wouldn’t be out here doing your best bad-news-Bergara impression.”

Ryan looks over at him with a frown, though he knows his stare isn’t as powerful with his shades on. “What?”

“You think I don’t know you? You're — " he seems to try to search for the right word, " — brooding."

Ryan lets out a laugh of disbelief, but Shane doesn't waver. Eventually, Ryan looks away, watching a pigeon bathe in a puddle from the park's sprinklers.

"I thought last night was," he swallows and steels himself, "fun."

When he looks back over, Shane's watching him, his gaze soft behind his glasses.

"You don't think it was a mistake."

Ryan shakes his head. "It was _definitely_ a mistake," Ryan insists, "but it was the good kind."

"The good kind?"

"Like when you order fries from Burger King and get an accidental onion ring at the bottom."

"Ordering from Burger King is never a good kind of mistake," Shane retorts and Ryan can't help but laugh, because he's glad that's what Shane wants to focus on.

He watches as Shane rubs his palms against his thighs and he wonders if he's doing it because they're clammy.

"I panicked," Shane admits after a long silence. "I thought you'd wake up and see me and regret everything, so I left because it was easier."

Ryan laughs again, a little tighter this time when he tries not to let himself hope too much. “Are we idiots?"

"Bonafide, grade-A idiots," Shane answers before carding his fingers through his hair with a soft huff of breath.

Ryan lets the silence drag out between them for a moment before asking, “What happens now?”

Shane stretches out his legs in a way that Ryan finds highly distracting, even though it shouldn’t be. He’s seen Shane do it hundreds of times before, but now it sends a thrill through him. “I don’t know,” he says, tugging his sleeve up a little to check his watch. “Breakfast?”

“With _us_ ,” Ryan complains, but Shane just shrugs.

“Yeah,” he agrees. “We get breakfast.”

“And what about after?”

“Nap?” Shane asks and Ryan finds himself looking skyward, wondering why any part of him would find Shane’s personality attractive. “Or, we could just see where things go. We don’t always have to have a plan. It worked for us last night.”

Ryan can’t tell if he’s talking about them today, or their relationship in general, but he thinks that’s Shane’s point. In a strange way, it’s actually comforting. If Shane hasn’t got it figured out, maybe he doesn’t have to either. Maybe that’s something they can work on together.

Shane offers him a gentle smile and Ryan finds himself returning it.

“Okay,” Ryan agrees. “We could do that.”

Shane reaches over and pats Ryan on the knee. “But there’s probably something you should know,” he says and he sounds serious enough that Ryan’s stomach sinks.

“Is it bad?”

Shane shrugs and then rubs at the back of his neck awkwardly. “I guess,” he says.“I just — I don’t put out on the first date.”

It takes a moment for the words to sink in, but then Shane’s mouth twitches and he smiles like he can’t help it.

“Oh my god,” Ryan says, shoving at Shane with his elbow. “You’re such a fucking — ”

But he doesn’t get to finish the insult because then Shane’s swooping in to press his stupid grin against Ryan’s mouth in what definitely doesn’t count as a kiss, but Shane’s hands are on his face and they’re warm and soft and Ryan lets it happen because he wants it so much. It takes less than a second for Shane to deepen it, kissing Ryan exactly as he had the night before, and Ryan thinks he could get used to the feeling.

A dog barks sharply from nearby and Ryan startles, pulling back as he remembers they’re still in public and could be recognized. He clears his throat, but Shane just smiles, eyes crinkling like it’s all endlessly amusing.

“Ugh,” Ryan complains, but Shane’s grin only widens.

He claps Ryan on the shoulder and squeezes gently as he says, “What about pancakes?”

Ryan lets it hang between them for a moment, like maybe there’s a chance he’ll say no, but the expression on Shane’s face says he doubts it.

“Yeah, okay,” Ryan begrudgingly agrees and Shane pushes himself to his feet and holds out his hand.

“C’mon,” he says, and Ryan finds himself taking it, even as he sighs heavily. Shane pulls him upright, but when Ryan tries to let go, Shane tightens his grip and holds on. “Finders keepers,” he says and it might actually be one of the few times Ryan doesn’t complain about Shane's bad jokes.

Slowly, they make their way across the park.

**Author's Note:**

> If you want to share feelings, you can also find me on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/blacktofade) and [Tumblr](http://blacktofade.tumblr.com/).


End file.
